Social network pooled post capture

ABSTRACT

A social network image pool system can capture one or more image data items (e.g., image, video) in a temporary persistent post pool. The post pool enables for efficient capture of multiple image data items for publishing in a manner that allows multiple images data items to be captured while preserving the editability of the multiple items before they are published to a social network site.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/929,413, filed on Apr. 30, 2020, which claims the benefit of priorityto U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/840,971, filed on Apr. 30,2019, each of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to special-purpose machinesthat manage image content processing and improvements to such variants,and to the technologies by which such special-purpose machines becomeimproved compared to other special-purpose machines for generating imagecontent.

BACKGROUND

Users can capture and edit image content, such as images or videos, onuser devices, such as mobile devices, smartphones, etc. While userdevices enable electronic transmission of images, editing the images canbe difficult through the limited resources of a mobile device.Furthermore, editing multiple images or videos and publishing them on anetwork (e.g., on a network site) is difficult due to these limitations.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To easily identify the discussion of any particular element or act, themost significant digit or digits in a reference number refer to thefigure (“FIG.”) number in which that element or act is first introduced.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example messaging system forexchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network,according to example embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating further details regarding themessaging system of FIG. 1, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating data structure that may bestored in a database of a messaging server system, according to certainexample embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a message,according to some embodiments, generated by a messaging client,application for communication.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example access-limitingprocess, in terms of which access to content (e.g., an ephemeralmessage, and associated multimedia payload of data) or a contentcollection (e.g., an ephemeral message story) may be time-limited (e.g.,made ephemeral), according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 6 shows example functional engines of a social network post poolingsystem, according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 7 shows a flow diagram of an example method for capturing imagecontent using the system, according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 8 shows an example flow diagram of an example method for managingpool sessions, according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 9 shows a flow diagram of a method for constraining a pool session,according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 10 shows an example application architecture for a system,according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 11 shows a client device in batch capture mode, according to someexample embodiments.

FIG. 12 shows an example review user interface, according to someexample embodiments.

FIG. 13 shows an example edit user interface, according to some exampleembodiments.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating a representative softwarearchitecture, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine,according to sonic example embodiments, able to read instructions from amachine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) andperform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The description that follows includes systems, methods, techniques,instruction sequences, and computing machine program products thatembody illustrative embodiments of the disclosure. In the followingdescription, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific detailsare set forth in order to provide an understanding of variousembodiments of the inventive subject matter. It will be evident,however, to those skilled in the art, that embodiments of the inventivesubject matter may be practiced without these specific details. Ingeneral, well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, andtechniques are not necessarily shown in detail.

Many users consume image content such as videos and images on theirmobile devices (e.g., client devices). While some mobile devices enableelectronic and transmission of images, editing an image or editingmultiple images at a time can be difficult through the limited resourcesof a mobile device. Often times, users have to switch between multipleapplications running on the mobile device to complete the actions ofcapturing, editing, reviewing and sending the image content to a socialnetwork site, or alternatively, saving the image content in a localmemory of the mobile device. Furthermore, users often encounter theproblem of losing a captured image content when accidentally sign offfrom the application or when the application is terminated by the mobiledevice.

The systems and method disclose herein improve on messaging systems byhaving a social network post pooling system that can allow users tocapture multiple image data items in one session, and edit each of theitems from a post pool one item at a time or in combination as a batch.The social network post pooling system can also allow users to publishthe selected items as ephemeral messages on a social network site, andsave the selected items to a local memory of the client device. In theevent the post pool session is prematurely terminated by the clientdevice, the social network post pooling system can allow users tocontinue editing and reviewing the captured multiple image data itemsafter the premature termination. The social network post pooling systemcan further enable efficient capture of multiple image data items forpublishing. Specifically, the social network post pooling system allowsmultiple images data items to be captured while preserving theeditability of the multiple items before the multiple items arepublished to a social network site.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example messaging system 100 forexchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network106. The messaging system 100 includes multiple client devices 102, eachof which hosts a number of applications including a messaging clientapplication 104. Each messaging client application 104 iscommunicatively coupled to other instances of the messaging clientapplication 104 and a messaging server system 108 via the network 106(e.g., the Internet).

Accordingly, each messaging client application 104 is able tocommunicate and exchange data with another messaging client application104 and with the messaging server system 108 via the network 106. Thedata exchanged between messaging client applications 104, and between amessaging client application 104 and the messaging server system 108,includes functions (e.g., commands to invoke functions) as well aspayload data (e.g., text, audio, video, or other multimedia data).

The messaging server system 108 provides server-side functionality viathe network 106 to a particular messaging client application 104. Whilecertain functions of the messaging system 100 are described herein asbeing performed by either a messaging client application 104 or by themessaging server system 108, it will be appreciated that the location ofcertain functionality within either the messaging client application 104or the messaging server system 108 is a design choice. For example, itmay be technically preferable to initially deploy certain technology andfunctionality within the messaging server system 108, and to latermigrate this technology and functionality to the messaging clientapplication 104 where a client device 102 has a sufficient processingcapacity.

The messaging server system 108 supports various services and operationsthat are provided to the messaging client application 104. Suchoperations include transmitting data to, receiving data from, andprocessing data generated by the messaging client application 104. Thisdata may include message content, client device information, geolocationinformation, media augmentation and overlays, message contentpersistence conditions, social network information, and live eventinformation, as examples. Data exchanges within the messaging system 100are invoked and controlled through functions available via userinterfaces (UIs) of the messaging client application 104.

Turning now specifically to the messaging server system 108, anapplication programming interface (API) server 110 is coupled to, andprovides a programmatic interface to, an application server 112. Theapplication server 112 is communicatively coupled to a database server118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which is stored dataassociated with messages processed by the application server 112.

The API server 110 receives and transmits message data (e.g., commandsand message payloads) between the client devices 102 and the applicationserver 112. Specifically, the API server 110 provides a set ofinterfaces (e.g., routines and protocols) that can be called or queriedby the messaging client application 104 in order to invoke functionalityof the application server 112. The API server 110 exposes variousfunctions supported by the application server 112, including accountregistration; login functionality; the sending of messages, via theapplication server 112, from a particular messaging client application104 to another messaging client application 104; the sending of mediafiles (e.g., images or video) from a messaging client application 104 toa messaging server application 114 for possible access by anothermessaging client application 104; the setting of a collection of mediadata (e.g., a story); the retrieval of such collections; the retrievalof a list of friends of a user of a client device 102; the retrieval ofmessages and content; the adding and deletion of friends to and from asocial graph; the location of friends within the social graph; andopening application events (e.g., relating to the messaging clientapplication 104).

The application server 112 hosts a number of applications andsubsystems, including the messaging server application 114, an imageprocessing system 116, and a social network system 122. The messagingserver application 114 implements a number of message-processingtechnologies and functions, particularly related to the aggregation andother processing of content (e.g., textual and multimedia content)included in messages received from multiple instances of the messagingclient application 104. As will be described in further detail, the textand media content from multiple sources may be aggregated intocollections of content (e.g., called stories or galleries). Thesecollections are then made available, by the messaging server application114, to the messaging client application 104. Other processor- andmemory-intensive processing of data may also be performed server-side bythe messaging server application 114, in view of the hardwarerequirements for such processing.

The application server 112 also includes the image processing system116, which is dedicated to performing various image processingoperations, typically with respect to images or video received withinthe payload of a message at the messaging server application 114.

The social network system 122 supports various social networkingfunctions and services, and makes these functions and services availableto the messaging server application 114. To this end, the social networksystem 122 maintains and accesses an entity graph (e.g., entity graph304 in FIG. 3) within the database 120. Examples of functions andservices supported by the social network system 122 include theidentification of other users of the messaging system 100 with whom aparticular user has relationships or whom the particular user is“following,” and also the identification of other entities and interestsof a particular user. The application server 112 is communicativelycoupled to a database server 118, which facilitates access to a database120 in which is stored data associated with messages processed by themessaging server application 114.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating further details regarding themessaging system 100, according to example embodiments. Specifically,the messaging system 100 is shown to comprise the messaging clientapplication 104 and the application server 112, which in turn embody anumber of subsystems, namely an ephemeral timer system 202, a collectionmanagement system 204, an augmentation system 206, and a social networkpost pooling system 210.

The ephemeral timer system 202 is responsible for enforcing thetemporary access to content permitted by the messaging clientapplication 104 and the messaging server application 114. To this end,the ephemeral timer system 202 incorporates a number of timers that,based on duration and display parameters associated with a message orcollection of messages (e.g., a story), selectively display and enableaccess to messages and associated content via the messaging clientapplication 104. Further details regarding the operation of theephemeral timer system 202 are provided below.

The collection management system 204 is responsible for managingcollections of media (e.g., collections of text, image, video, and audiodata). In some examples, a collection of content (e.g., messages,including images, video, text, and audio) may be organized into an“event gallery” or an “event story.” Such a collection may be madeavailable for a specified time period, such as the duration of an eventto which the content relates. For example, content relating to a musicconcert may be made available as a “story” for the duration of thatmusic concert. The collection management system 204 may also beresponsible for publishing an icon that provides notification of theexistence of a particular collection to the user interface of themessaging client application 104.

The collection management system 204 furthermore includes a curationinterface 208 that allows a collection manager to manage and curate aparticular collection of content. For example, the curation interface208 enables an event organizer to curate a collection of contentrelating to a specific event (e.g., delete inappropriate content orredundant messages). Additionally, the collection management system 204employs machine vision (or image recognition technology) and contentrules to automatically curate a content collection. In certainembodiments, compensation may be paid to a user for inclusion ofuser-generated content into a collection. In such cases, the curationinterface 208 operates to automatically make payments to such users forthe use of their content.

The augmentation system 206 provides various functions that enable auser to augment (e.g., annotate or otherwise modify or edit) mediacontent associated with a message. For example, the augmentation system206 provides functions related to the generation and publishing of mediaoverlays for messages processed by the messaging system 100. Theaugmentation system 206 operatively supplies a media overlay oraugmentation (e.g., an image filter) to the messaging client 104 basedon a geolocation of the client device 102. In another example, theaugmentation system 206 operatively supplies a media overlay to themessaging client 104 based on other information, such as social networkinformation of the user of the client device 102. A media overlay mayinclude audio and visual content and visual effects. Examples of audioand visual content include pictures, texts, logos, animations, and soundeffects. An example of a visual effect includes color overlaying. Theaudio and visual content or the visual effects can be applied to a mediacontent item (e.g., a photo) at the client device 102. For example, themedia overlay may include text or image that can be overlaid on top of aphotograph taken by the client device 102. In another example, the mediaoverlay includes an identification of a location overlay (e.g., Venicebeach), a name of a live event, or a name of a merchant overlay (e.g.,Beach Coffee House). In another example, the augmentation system 206uses the geolocation of the client device 102 to identify a mediaoverlay that includes the name of a merchant at the geolocation of theclient device 102. The media overlay may include other indiciaassociated with the merchant. The media overlays may be stored in thedatabase 120 and accessed through the database server 118.

In one example embodiment, the augmentation system 206 provides auser-based publication platform that enables users to select ageolocation on a map and upload content associated with the selectedgeolocation. The user may also specify circumstances under whichparticular content should be offered to other users. The augmentationsystem 206 generates a media overlay that includes the uploaded contentand associates the uploaded content with the selected geolocation.

In another example embodiment, the augmentation system 206 provides amerchant-based publication platform that enables merchants to select aparticular media overlay associated with a geolocation via a biddingprocess. For example, the augmentation system 206 associates the mediaoverlay of a highest-bidding merchant with a corresponding geolocationfor a predefined amount of time.

As shown in FIG. 2, the messaging client application 104 and theapplication server 112 can also embody the social network post-poolingsystem 210 that is communicatively coupled to the augmentation system206 and the ephemeral timer 202. The social network post-pooling system210 enables the capture and editing of of multiple image data items inone session. The social network post pooling system can also provide forpublishing of the selected items as ephemeral messages on a socialnetwork site and saving the selected items to a local memory of theclient device. In the event the post pool session is prematurelyterminated by the client device, the social network post pooling systemenables resuming the editing and reviewing the captured multiple imagedata items after the premature termination. The social network postpooling system can further enable efficient capture of multiple imagedata items for publishing.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating data 300 which may be storedin the database 120 of the messaging server system 108, according tocertain example embodiments. While the content of the database 120 isshown to comprise a number of tables, it will be appreciated that thedata 300 could be stored in other types of data structures (e.g., as anobject-oriented database).

The database 120 includes message data stored within a message table314. An entity table 302 stores entity data, including an entity graph304. Entities for which records are maintained within the entity table302 may include individuals, corporate entities, organizations, objects,places, events, and so forth. Regardless of type, any entity regardingwhich the messaging server system 108 stores data may be a recognizedentity. Each entity is provided with a unique identifier, as well as anentity type identifier (not shown).

The entity graph 304 furthermore stores information regardingrelationships and associations between or among entities. Suchrelationships may be social, professional (e.g., work at a commoncorporation or organization), interest-based, or activity-based, forexample.

The database 120 also stores augmentation data, in the example form offilters, in an augmentation table 312. Filters for which data is storedwithin the augmentation table 312 are associated with and applied tovideos (for which data is stored in a video table 310) and/or images(for which data is stored in an image table 308). Filters, in oneexample, are overlays that are displayed as overlaid on an image orvideo during presentation to a recipient user. Filters may be of varioustypes, including user-selected filters from a gallery of filterspresented to a sending user by the messaging client application 104 whenthe sending user is composing a message. Other types of filters includegeolocation filters (also known as geo-filters), which may be presentedto a sending user based on geographic location. For example, geolocationfilters specific to a neighborhood or special location may be presentedwithin a user interface by the messaging client application 104, basedon geolocation information determined by a Global Positioning System(GPS) unit of the client device 102. Another type of filter is a datafilter, which may be selectively presented to a sending user by themessaging client application 104, based on other inputs or informationgathered by the client device 102 during the message creation process.Examples of data filters include a current temperature at a specificlocation, a current speed at which a sending user is traveling, abattery life for a client device 102, or the current time.

Other augmentation data that may be stored within the image table 308includes augmented reality content items (e.g., corresponding toapplying Lenses or augmented reality experiences) An augmented realitycontent item may be a real-time special effect and sound that may beadded to image content, such as an image or a video.

As described above, augmentation data includes augmented reality contentitems, overlays, image transformations, AR images, and similar termsrefer to modifications that may be applied to image data (e.g., videosor images). This includes real-time modifications, which modify an imageas it is captured using device sensors (e.g., one or multiple cameras)of a client device 102 and then displayed on a screen of the clientdevice 102 with the modifications. This also includes modifications tostored content, such as video clips in a gallery that may be modified.For example, in a client device 102 with access to multiple augmentedreality content items, a user can use a single video clip with multipleaugmented reality content items to see how the different augmentedreality content items will modify the stored clip. For example, multipleaugmented reality content items that apply different pseudorandommovement models can he applied to the same content by selectingdifferent augmented reality content items for the content. Similarly,real-time video capture may be used with an illustrated modification toshow how video images currently being captured by sensors of a clientdevice 102 would modify the captured data. Such data may simply bedisplayed on the screen and not stored in memory, or the contentcaptured by the device sensors may be recorded and stored in memory withor without the modifications (or both). In some systems, a previewfeature can show how different augmented reality content items will lookwithin different windows in a display at the same time. This can, forexample, enable multiple windows with different pseudorandom animationsto be viewed on a display at the same time.

Data and various systems using augmented reality content items or othersuch transform systems to modify content using this data can thusinvolve detection of objects (e.g., faces, hands, bodies, cats, dogs,surfaces, objects, etc.), tracking of such objects as they leave, enter,and move around the field of view in video frames, and the modificationor transformation of such objects as they are tracked. In variousembodiments, different methods for achieving such transformations may beused. Some examples may involve generating a three-dimensional meshmodel of the object or objects, and using transformations and animatedtextures of the model within the video to achieve the transformation. Inother examples, tracking of points on an object may be used to place animage or texture (which may be two dimensional or three dimensional) atthe tracked position. In still further examples, neural network analysisof video frames may be used to place images, models, or textures incontent (e.g., images or frames of video). Augmented reality contentitems thus refer both to the images, models, and textures used to createtransformations in content, as well as to additional modeling andanalysis information needed to achieve such transformations with objectdetection, tracking, and placement.

Real-time video processing can be performed with any kind of video data(e.g., video streams, video files, etc.) saved in a memory of acomputerized system of any kind. For example, a user can load videofiles and save them in a memory of a device, or can generate a videostream using sensors of the device. Additionally, any objects can beprocessed using a computer animation model, such as a human's face andparts of a human body, animals, or non-living things such as chairs,cars, or other objects.

In some examples, when a particular modification is selected along withcontent to be transformed, elements to be transformed are identified bythe computing device, and then detected and tracked if they are presentin the frames of the video. The elements of the object are modifiedaccording to the request, for modification, thus transforming the framesof the video stream. Transformation of frames of a video stream can beperformed by different methods for different kinds of transformation.For example, for transformations of frames mostly referring to changingforms of object's elements characteristic points for each element of anobject are calculated (e.g., using an Active Shape Model (ASM) or otherknown methods). Then, a mesh based on the characteristic points isgenerated for each of the at least one element of the object. This meshused in the following stage of tracking the elements of the object inthe video stream. In the process of tracking, the mentioned mesh foreach element is aligned with a position of each element. Then,additional points are generated on the mesh. A first set of first pointsis generated for each element based on a request for modification, and aset of second points is generated for each element based on the set offirst points and the request for modification. Then, the frames of thevideo stream can be transformed by modifying the elements of the objecton the basis of the sets of first and second points and the mesh. Insuch method, a background of the modified object can be changed ordistorted as well by tracking and modifying the background.

In some examples, transformations changing some areas of an object usingits elements can be performed by calculating characteristic points foreach element of an object and generating a mesh based on the calculatedcharacteristic points. Points are generated on the mesh, and thenvarious areas based on the points are generated. The elements of theobject are then tracked by aligning the area for each element with aposition for each of the at least one element, and properties of theareas can be modified based on the request for modification, thustransforming the frames of the video stream. Depending on the specificrequest for modification properties of the mentioned areas can betransformed in different ways. Such modifications may involve changingcolor of areas; removing at least some part of areas from the frames ofthe video stream; including one or more new objects into areas which arebased on a request for modification; and modifying or distorting theelements of an area or object. In various embodiments, any combinationof such modifications or other similar modifications may be used. Forcertain models to be animated, some characteristic points can beselected as control points to be used in determining the entirestate-space of options for the model animation.

In some examples of a computer animation model to transform image datausing face detection, the face is detected on an image with use of aspecific face detection algorithm (e.g., Viola-Jones). Then, an ActiveShape Model (ASM) algorithm is applied to the face region of an image todetect facial feature reference points.

In other examples, other methods and algorithms suitable for facedetection can be used. For example, in some embodiments, features arelocated using a landmark, which represents a distinguishable pointpresent in most of the images under consideration. For facial landmarks,for example, the location of the left eye pupil may be used. If aninitial landmark is not identifiable (e.g., if a person has aneyepatch), secondary landmarks may be used. Such landmark identificationprocedures may be used for any such objects. In some examples, a set oflandmarks forms a shape. Shapes can be represented as vectors using thecoordinates of the points in the shape. One shape is aligned to anotherwith a similarity transform (allowing translation, scaling, androtation) that minimizes the average Euclidean distance between shapepoints. The mean shape is the mean of the aligned training shapes.

In some examples, a search for landmarks from the mean shape aligned tothe position and size of the face determined by a global face detectoris started. Such a search then repeats the steps of suggesting atentative shape by adjusting the locations of shape points by templatematching of the image texture around each point and then conforming thetentative shape to a global shape model until convergence occurs. Insome systems, individual template matches are unreliable, and the shapemodel pools the results of the weak template matches to form a strongeroverall classifier. The entire search is repeated at each level in animage pyramid, from coarse to fine resolution.

A transformation system can capture an image or video stream on a clientdevice (e.g., the client device 102) and perform complex imagemanipulations locally on the client device 102 while maintaining asuitable user experience, computation time, and power consumption. Thecomplex image manipulations may include size and shape changes, emotiontransfers (e.g., changing a face from a frown to a smile), statetransfers (e.g., aging a subject, reducing apparent age, changinggender), style transfers, graphical element application, and any othersuitable image or video manipulation implemented by a convolutionalneural network that has been configured to execute efficiently on theclient device 102.

In some examples, a computer animation model to transform image data canbe used by a system where a user may capture an image or video stream ofthe user (e.g., a selfie) using a client device 102 having a neuralnetwork operating as part of a messaging client application 104operating on the client device 102. The transformation system operatingwithin the messaging client 104 determines the presence of a face withinthe image or video stream and provides modification icons associatedwith a computer animation model to transform image data, or the computeranimation model can be present as associated with an interface describedherein. The modification icons include changes that may be the basis formodifying the user's face within the image or video stream as part ofthe modification operation. Once a modification icon is selected, thetransform system initiates a process to convert the image of the user toreflect the selected modification icon (e.g., generate a smiling face onthe user). A modified image or video stream may be presented in agraphical user interface displayed on the client device 102 as soon asthe image or video stream is captured, and a specified modification isselected. The transformation system may implement a complexconvolutional neural network on a portion of the image or video streamto generate and apply the selected modification. That is, the user maycapture the image or video stream and be presented with a modifiedresult in real-time or near real-time once a modification icon has beenselected. Further, the modification may be persistent while the videostream is being captured, and the selected modification icon remainstoggled. Machine taught neural networks may be used to enable suchmodifications.

The graphical user interface, presenting the modification performed bythe transform system, may supply the user with additional interactionoptions. Such options may be based on the interface used to initiate thecontent capture and selection of a particular computer animation model(e.g., initiation from a content creator user interface). In variousembodiments, a modification may be persistent after an initial selectionof a modification icon. The user may toggle the modification on or offby tapping or otherwise selecting the face being modified by thetransformation system and store it for later viewing or browse to otherareas of the imaging application. Where multiple faces are modified bythe transformation system, the user may toggle the modification on oroff globally by tapping or selecting a single face modified anddisplayed within a graphical user interface. In some embodiments,individual faces, among a group of multiple faces, may be individuallymodified, or such modifications may be individually toggled by tappingor selecting the individual face or a series of individual facesdisplayed within the graphical user interface.

As mentioned above, the video table 310 stores video data which, in oneembodiment, is associated with messages for which records are maintainedwithin the message table 314. Similarly, the image table 308 storesimage data associated with messages for which message data is stored inthe message table 314. The entity table 302 may associate variousaugmentations from the augmentation table 312 with various images andvideos stored in the image table 308 and the video table 310.

A story table 306 stores data regarding collections of messages andassociated image, video, or audio data, which are compiled into acollection (e.g., a story or a gallery). The creation of a particularcollection may be initiated by a particular user (e.g., each user forwhom a record is maintained in the entity table 302). A user may createa “personal story” in the form of a collection of content that has beencreated and sent/broadcast by that user. To this end, the user interfaceof the messaging client application 104 may include an icon that isuser-selectable to enable a sending user to add specific content to hisor her personal story.

A collection may also constitute a “live story,” which is a collectionof content from multiple users that is created manually, automatically,or using a combination of manual and automatic techniques. For example,a “live story” may constitute a curated stream of user-submitted contentfrom various locations and events. Users whose client devices 102 havelocation services enabled and are at a common location or event at aparticular time may, for example, be presented with an option, via auser interface of the messaging client, application 104, to contributecontent to a particular live story. The live story may be identified tothe user by the messaging client application 104 based on his or herlocation. The end result is a “live story” told from a communityperspective.

A further type of content collection is known as a “location story,”which enables a user whose client device 102 is located within aspecific geographic location (e.g., on a college or university campus)to contribute to a particular collection. In some embodiments, acontribution to a location story may require a second degree ofauthentication to verify that the end user belongs to a specificorganization or other entity (e.g., is a student on the universitycampus).

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a message 400,according to some embodiments, generated by a messaging clientapplication 104 for communication to a further messaging clientapplication 104 or the messaging server application 114. The content ofa particular message 400 is used to populate the message table 314stored within the database 120, accessible by the messaging serverapplication 114. Similarly, the content of a message 400 is stored inmemory as “in-transit” or “in-flight” data of the client device 102 orthe application server 112. The message 400 is shown to include thefollowing components:

A message identifier 402: a unique identifier that identifies themessage 400.

A message text payload 404: text, to be generated by a user via a userinterface of the client device 102 and that is included in the message400.

-   -   A message image payload 406: image data captured by a camera        component of a client device 102 or retrieved from memory of a        client device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message video payload 408: video data captured by a camera        component or retrieved from a memory component of the client        device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message audio payload 410: audio data captured by a microphone        or retrieved from the memory component of the client device 102,        and that is included in the message 400.    -   Message augmentation data 412: augmentation data (e.g., filters,        stickers, or other annotations or enhancements) that represents        augmentations to be applied to the message image payload 406,        message video payload 408, or message audio payload 410 of the        message 400.    -   A message duration parameter 414: a parameter value indicating,        in seconds, the amount of time for which content of the message        400 (e.g., the message image payload 406, message video payload        408, and message audio payload 410) is to be presented or made        accessible to a user via the messaging client application 104.    -   A message geolocation parameter 416: geolocation data (e.g.,        latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates) associated with the        content payload of the message 400. Multiple message geolocation        parameter 416 values may be included in the payload, with each        of these parameter values being associated with respective        content items included in the content (e.g., a specific image in        the message image payload 406, or a specific video in the        message video payload 408).    -   A message story identifier 418: values identifying one or more        content collections (e.g., “stories”) with which a particular        content item in the message image payload 406 of the message 400        is associated. For example, multiple images within the message        image payload 406 may each be associated with multiple content        collections using identifier values.    -   A message tag 420: one or more tags, each of which is indicative        of the subject matter of content included in the message        payload. For example, where a particular image included in the        message image payload 406 depicts an animal (e.g., a lion), a        tag value may be included within the message tag 420 that is        indicative of the relevant animal. Tag values may be generated        manually, based on user input, or may be automatically generated        using, for example, image recognition.    -   A message sender identifier 422: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address, or device        identifier) indicative of a user of the client device 102 on        which the message 400 was generated and from which the message        400 was sent.    -   A message receiver identifier 424: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address, or device        identifier) indicative of a user of the client device 102 to        which the message 400 is addressed.

The contents (e.g., values) of the various components of the message 400may be pointers to locations in tables within which content data valuesare stored. For example, an image value in the message image payload 406may be a pointer to (or address of) a location within the image table308. Similarly, values within the message video payload 408 may point todata stored within the video table 310, values stored within the messageaugmentation data 412 may point to data stored in the augmentation table312, values stored within the message story identifier 418 may point todata stored in the story table 306, and values stored within the messagesender identifier 422 and the message receiver identifier 424 may pointto user records stored within the entity table 302.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an access-limiting process500, in terms of which access to content (e.g., an ephemeral message502, and associated multimedia payload of data) or a content collection(e.g., an ephemeral message story 504) may be time-limited (e.g., madeephemeral), according to some example embodiments.

An ephemeral message 502 is shown to be associated with a messageduration parameter 506, the value of which determines an amount of timethat the ephemeral message 502 will be displayed to a receiving user ofthe ephemeral message 502 by the messaging client application 104. Inone embodiment, where the messaging client application 104 is anapplication client, an ephemeral message 502 is viewable by a receivinguser for up to a maximum of 10 seconds, depending on the amount of timethat the sending user specifies using the message duration parameter506.

The message duration parameter 506 and the message receiver identifier424 are shown to be inputs to a message timer 512, which is responsiblefor determining the amount of time that the ephemeral message 502 isshown to a particular receiving user identified by the message receiveridentifier 424. In particular, the ephemeral message 502 will only beshown to the relevant receiving user for a time period determined by thevalue of the message duration parameter 506. The message timer 512 isshown to provide output to a more generalized ephemeral timer system202, which is responsible for the overall timing of display of content(e.g., an ephemeral message 502) to a receiving user.

The ephemeral message 502 is shown in FIG. 5 to be included within anephemeral message story 504 (e.g., a personal story, or an event story).The ephemeral message story 504 has an associated story durationparameter 508, a value of which determines a time duration for which theephemeral message story 504 is presented and accessible to users of themessaging system 100. The story duration parameter 508, for example, maybe the duration of a music concert, where the ephemeral message story504 is a collection of content pertaining to that concert.Alternatively, a user (either the owning user or a curator user) mayspecify the value for the story duration parameter 508 when performingthe setup and creation of the ephemeral message story 504.

Additionally, each ephemeral message 502 within the ephemeral messagestory 504 has an associated story participation parameter 510, a valueof which determines the duration of time for which the ephemeral message502 will be accessible within the context of the ephemeral message story504. Accordingly, a particular ephemeral message 502 may “expire” andbecome inaccessible within the context of the ephemeral message story504, prior to the ephemeral message story 504 itself expiring in termsof the story duration parameter 508.

The ephemeral timer system 202 may furthermore operationally remove aparticular ephemeral message 502 from the ephemeral message story 504based on a determination that it has exceeded an associated storyparticipation parameter 510. For example, when a sending user hasestablished a story participation parameter 510 of 24 hours fromposting, the ephemeral timer system 202 will remove the relevantephemeral message 502 from the ephemeral message story 504 after thespecified 24 hours. The ephemeral timer system 202 also operates toremove an ephemeral message story 504 either when the storyparticipation parameter 510 for each and every ephemeral message 502within the ephemeral message story 504 has expired, or when theephemeral message story 504 itself has expired in terms of the storyduration parameter 508.

In response to the ephemeral timer system 202 determining that anephemeral message story 504 has expired (e.g., is no longer accessible),the ephemeral timer system 202 communicates with the messaging system100 (e.g., specifically, the messaging client application 104) to causean indicium (e.g., an icon) associated with the relevant ephemeralmessage story 504 to no longer be displayed within a user interface ofthe messaging client application 104.

FIG. 6 shows example functional engines of a social network post poolingsystem 210, according to some example embodiments. As illustrated, thesocial network post pooling system 210 comprises an interface engine605, an image engine 610, a session engine 615, an edit engine 620, andan action engine 625, according to some example embodiments.

The interface engine 605 manages generating interfaces and receivinginstructions from the user of the device. The image engine 610 managescapturing image content, which can include image data items, such asimages, image sequences (slide shows), or videos. The session engine 615manages a persistent session for storage of a finite number of imagedata items. The edit engine 620 manages editing one or more image dataitems that are in an active pool session using imaging processing.Examples of image processing includes receiving and applying to theimage data items augmentation data such as media overlays, augmentedreality content items, overlays, image transformations, AR images, etc.The action engine 625 manages performing actions with content in theactive session pool. For example, the action engine 625 can performactions such as storing the image data items on memory of a clientdevice, deleting one or more of the items, transmitting the items forpublishing as an ephemeral message on a social network site, etc.

FIG. 7 shows a flow diagram of an example method 700 for capturing imagecontent using the social network post pooling system 210, according tosome example embodiments. At operation 705, a post pool capture sessionis initiated. For example, the interface engine 605 receives selectionof a pool user interface element (e.g., UI button) on the display deviceof the client device, and responsive to the received selection, thesession engine 615 initiates an active social network pool session onthe user device. The pool user interface element includes the batchbutton 1003.

At operation 710, the image engine 610 generates image content,including image data items, such as images, image sequences (slideshows), or videos that are stored in temporary memory allocated for theactive pool session. For example, the user of the client device selectsa batch capture button that if tapped, the image engine 610 generates animage for storage in the active pool session, whereas if the batchcapture button is pressed and held, a video recording is generated forthe duration of the button depression. In one embodiment, the imageengine 610 generates the image stored in a temporary memory allocatedfor the active social network pool session without immediatelydisplaying the multiple image data items on the client device. The imageengine 610 allows users to continuously capture (e.g. generate) multipleimage data items (e.g. images and videos) up to a pool limit. During thecapture, the interface engine 605 does not immediately display thecaptured multiple image data items on the user interface of the clientdevice, which allows the user to continuously capturing more items up toa pool limit.

At operation 715, the session engine 615 stores the image data items inthe active social network pool session that are generated by the imageengine 610. During the capture, the session engine 615 stores thecaptured items in a temporary memory allocated for the active socialnetwork pool session.

At operation 720, the edit engine 620 generates review elements (e.g.,edit buttons) displayed on the user interface of the user device asdiscussed below with reference to FIGS. 10, 12 and 13. The edit engine620 may receives edits and modifications to each of the multiple imagedata items in the active social network pool session based on the userselection and interaction with each of the review elements.

At operation 725, the action engine 625 stores the modificationsassociated with each edited image data item per the received edits andmodifications. For example, the action engine 625 moves the edited itemsstored in temporary memory for the active session to a main imagegallery of the client device 102 operating system or a main gallery areaof the application 104 for later viewing and edits through theapplication 104.

At operation 730, the action engine 625 transmits one or more selectedmultiple image data items as ephemeral messages on a social networksite. For example, the action engine 625 publishes the one or moreselected multiple image data items as ephemeral messages on a socialnetwork site. The action engine 625 may also save the one or more imagedata items from the pool in the main gallery memory of the application104 or the local memory of the client device 102.

At operation 735, in response to the operation by the action engine 625(e.g., transmitting the pool items, closing the pool, or saving theitems), the session engine 615 terminates the active social network poolsession and the user device, or allows the application 104 stays in thebatch capture mode without returning to the single image content captureand share mode. In some examples, the user device or application 104returns to the single image content capture and share mode after thesession engine 615 terminates the active social network pool session. Insome examples, the action engine 625 deletes the image data items fromthe temporary memory allocated for the active social network poolsession after the user publishes the multiple data items as ephemeralmessages on a social network site or saves the multiple data items inthe local memory of the client device 102.

FIG. 8 shows an example flow diagram of an example method 800 formanaging pool sessions, according to some example embodiments. Atoperation 805, the client device 102 initiates the application 104,which was previously intentionally or prematurely terminated. Forexample, prior to method 800 being performed, the user of the clientdevice may have started a post pool session, captured a few image dataitems in the pool, and accidentally closed the application 104, therebyclosing the integrated social network post pooling system 210. In thisexample, at operation 805, the user opens the application 104 atoperation 805 that he/she accidentally closed.

At operation 810, in response to the application 104 being activated,the social network post pooling system 210 activates and the sessionengine 615 identifies that an active pool session exists in persistentstate memory of application 104. For example, the session engine 615identifies the pool that was previously initiated and comprises theimage data items captured before the application was accidentallyclosed). The session engine 615 identifies that the active socialnetwork pool session is prematurely terminated by a client device eventthat is not a pre-configured user termination event. The pre-configureduser termination event may include, referring to FIG. 12, saving (e.g.storing) the image data items in a local memory of a client device viatapping the save button 1215, or publishing the image data items on asocial network site via tapping the share button 1220. A client deviceevent may a user selection of any interface element (e.g., UI button) onthe display device of the client device generated by the social networkpost pooling system 210.

At operation 815, the session engine 615 reactivates the pool sessionand displays the pool image data items on the display screen of theclient device. At operation 820, the edit engine 620 receives edits toone or more items in the pool via review elements (e.g., edit buttons)displayed on the display device of the user device. At operation 825,the action engine 625 transmits the one or more items in the pool. Forexample, the action engine 625 publishes the pool items as an ephemeralmessage on the social network site. At operation 830, the session engine615 terminates the active session pool thereby removing the items fromthe persistent memory of the pool, and the user device or application104 stays in the batch capture mode without returning to the singleimage content capture mode.

FIG. 9 shows a flow diagram of a method 900 for constraining a poolsession, according to some example embodiments. At operation 905, thesession engine 615 initiates a pool session. At operation 910, the imageengine 610 generates a plurality of image data items (e.g., images,video); as the image data items are created, they are added to theactive session pool, according to some example embodiments. At operation915, the session engine 615 determines that a quantity of the multipleimage data items in the active social network pool session meets a poollimit. The pool limit may include a threshold number of image data itemstaken at a single active social network pool session, memory storagelimit of image data items individually or combined (e.g. pool memorylimit), a time duration threshold of each image data items displaysindividually or combined (e.g. pool time limit). For example, the pooltime limit may also be a time duration threshold associated with all ofthe multiple image data items automatically playing one after anotherfrom the multi-item navigation element 1205 as a complete preview ofwhat will be posted upon selecting the share button 1220.

At operation 920, in response to the pool limit being met, the editengine 620 automatically initiates the edit user interface, and the usercan edit or delete items from the pool in an edit mode via the edit userinterface. In one embodiment, in response to the session engine 615identifying the pool limit being met, the session engine 516 causes theclient device to display an edit user interface configured to receiveand apply edits from a user to the multiple image data items using imageprocessing.

After operation 920, the method 900 may continue to other operations atoperation 925, such as pool item transmission, deletion, and so on, asdiscussed above. For example, operation 925 may be operation 725 oroperation 820.

FIG. 10 shows an example application architecture 1000 for the socialnetwork post pooling system 210, according to some example embodiments.In response to the user selecting batch button 1003, the social networkpost pooling system 210 initiates an active pool object 1025 (thatcorresponds to a persistent memory session), and a batch capture button1004 is displayed on the user interface indicating the system 210 is inbatch capture mode 1005, in which the user can tap or hold down thebatch capture button 1004 to create images and video that areautomatically added to active pool object 1025. The user can select thereview button 1007 when the user no longer wants to add items to thepool (or in response to the pool limit being triggered as discussed). Inresponse to the selection of review button 1007, the system 210 enters areview mode 1010, in which the multi-item navigator element 1030A showsthumbnails of the items in the active pool object 1025. In some exampleembodiments a media player 1035 plays content selected in themulti-navigator element to let the user preview what was captured.According to some example embodiments, an invisible edit layer 1020 isoverlaid on the player 1035 to display selectable edit buttons 1022 thatcan be selected by the user to initiate an edit mode 1015. Users mayalso initiate the edit mode 1015 by tapping on any of the thumbnails,tapping on the background displaying the image data item, or swiping onthe background displaying the image data item to apply a media overlay,etc. For example, if the user selects the second item in the pool, avideo, the system 210 enters edit mode 1015 in which the edit engine canmodify the items in the pool. In the illustrated example embodiments,the multi-item navigator element 1030B is augmented with edit controls,such as a video control that allows the user to trim the length of thevideo or split the video into two video items in the pool. Additionally,the user can use edit buttons 1023 to apply editing effects toindividual items in the pool or in bulk. The editing effects may includeaudio and visual content and visual effects. Examples of audio andvisual content include pictures, texts, logos, animations, and soundeffects. An example of a visual effect includes color overlaying. Forexample, the user can select the text edit button “T” in edit buttons(e.g., edit buttons 1023), then select all of the items in themulti-item navigator element 1030B, then type text on the image idembeing displayed in the preview edit screen 1040, and the typed text isadded as a text overlay on all the items in the pool. The user can alsoselect the post duration timer button 1038 (the stopwatch icon) includedin the edit buttons 1023 to customize how long each image data item inthe pool displays as part of an ephemeral message sequence or story.According to some examples, the post duration may range from 1 second to10 seconds.

After the user is satisfied with the items in the pool, the user canselect share button 1050 to publish the items as an ephemeral message ora series of ephemeral messages on a social network site, as discussedabove.

In some example embodiments, the review mode 1010 is omitted, and inresponse to selecting the review button 1007, the system 210 proceedsdirectly from batch capture mode 1005 to a hybrid review and edit modethat performs the functions of review mode 1010 and edit mode 1015.

FIG. 11 shows a client device 102 in batch capture mode, according tosome example embodiments. In the example illustrated, the user hasselected the batch mode button 1110, which changes the image capturebutton to the hatch image capture button 1105 (which is denoted in thelatter by adding a “+” to the capture button element). The user can thentap or hold down button 1105, which automatically adds the image dataitems to the pool, but does not show them in the user interface 1100.When the user is finished hatch capturing, the user selects reviewbutton 1115 to review, select, remove, or edit the pool items, asdiscussed in further detail below with reference to FIG. 12 and FIG. 13.

FIG. 12 shows an example review user interface 1200 of system 210,according to some example embodiments. In the example of FIG. 12, themulti-item navigation element 1205 displays the pool.

items as thumbnails. The user can select one of the items and the itemwill be previewed (displayed if an image or played if a video) in thebackground player which is visible in the review user interface 1200.The user can further select share button 1220 to immediately publish thepool items on a network site, or save button 1215 to save the one ormore image data items from the pool in the main gallery memory of theapplication 104 or the local memory of the client device 102. In someexample embodiments, a pre-configured user termination event such assaving (e.g. storing) the image data items or publishing the image dataitems on a social network site may operate to terminate the pool sessionand the image data items will be deleted from the pool session; whereasclosing the application 104 will keep the session alive and save theitems for later edits. If the user selects the edit buttons 1210, theapplication enters the edit mode, as discussed with reference to FIGS.10, 12, and 13. Further, in some example embodiments, the review userinterface 1200 functions as an automatic timed preview of the image dataitems in the pool, where each item has a preconfigured preview timelimit. For instance, in the review interface 1200, the first from theleft item in the multi-item navigation element 1205 is displayed in fullsize on the review user interface 1200 for five seconds, followed byautomatically playing the second item from the multi-item navigationelement 1205 in full size for five seconds, and so forth so that thereview interface 1200 functions a complete preview of what will beposted upon selecting the share button 1220. The preconfigured previewtime limit for each item in the pool may be the same duration, or insome instances, may be different durations depending on the types of theitems. In some example embodiments, the user can select an item in themulti-item navigation element 1205 and change the time it is displayedvia tapping on the post duration timer button 1238. For example, theuser can select five seconds for the first item, but 1 second for thesecond item, and 10 seconds for the third item, thereby allowing theuser to preview and customize the flow how each item will place uponbeing accessed and viewed by other users once they're published on thesocial network site via the share button 1220.

FIG. 13 shows an example edit user interface 1300 of the social networkpost pooling system 210, according to some example embodiments. In theedit user interface 1300, the user can select an item, such as videoitem 1305. The edit user interface is configured to perform differentedits depending on which type of item is selected. For example, inresponse to selecting video item 1305, the multi-item navigation element1307 expanse the thumbnail view of the video item 1305 to allow the userto trim the length. Further, the user can select the remove element 1309to remove the video item 1305 from the pool. Additionally, the user canuse edit buttons 1310 to apply edits to individual image data items orall of the items in the pool as discussed above. Like in the review modeof FIG. 12, the user can then terminate the pool by saving the pooltimes using button 1313 or publishing the items as an ephemeral messageor series of ephemeral messages. In some example embodiments, which editbuttons are displayed depends on what type of item is being selected. Inthe example of FIG. 13, a video is being edited, to the edit buttonscorrespond to video edit buttons 1310. Whereas with reference to FIG.12, if an image is selected different edit buttons 1210 are displayed,that can be used to perform image edits. For example, image editsinclude imaging processing, such as media overlay or augmentation withreference to FIG. 2. Additionally, if the user selects the post durationtimer button (the stopwatch icon), the user can customize how long eachimage data item (e.g. an image or a video) in the pool displays as apart of an ephemeral message sequence or story; in this way, the usercan more completely control how the items in the pool are viewed byother users when the items are published via the share button 1220.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating an example software architecture1406, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described. FIG. 14 is a non-limiting example of asoftware architecture, and it will be appreciated that many otherarchitectures may be implemented to facilitate the functionalitydescribed herein. The software architecture 1406 may execute on hardwaresuch as a machine 1500 of FIG. 15 that includes, among other things,processors, memory, and I/O components. A representative hardware layer1452 is illustrated and can represent, for example, the machine 1500 ofFIG. 15. The representative hardware layer 1452 includes a processingunit 1454 having associated executable instructions 1404. The executableinstructions 1404 represent the executable instructions of the softwarearchitecture 1406, including implementation of the methods, components,and so forth described herein. The hardware layer 1452 also includes amemory/storage 1456, which also has the executable instructions 1404.The hardware layer 1452 may also comprise other hardware 1458.

In the example architecture of FIG. 14, the software architecture 1406may be conceptualized as a stack of layers where each layer providesparticular functionality. For example, the software architecture 1406may include layers such as an operating system 1402, libraries 1420,frameworks/middleware 1418, applications 1516, and a presentation layer1414. Operationally, the applications 1516 and/or other componentswithin the layers may invoke API calls 1408 through the software stackand receive a response in the form of messages 1412. The layersillustrated are representative in nature and not all softwarearchitectures have all layers. For example, some mobile orspecial-purpose operating systems may not provide aframeworks/middleware 1418, while others may provide such a layer. Othersoftware architectures may include additional or different layers.

The operating system 1402 may manage hardware resources and providecommon services. The operating system 1402 may include, for example, akernel 1422, services 1424, and drivers 1426. The kernel 1422 may act asan abstraction layer between the hardware and the other software layers.For example, the kernel 1422 may be responsible for memory management,processor management (e.g., scheduling), component management,networking, security settings, and so on. The services 1424 may provideother common services for the other software layers. The drivers 1426are responsible for controlling or interfacing with the underlyinghardware. For instance, the drivers 1426 include display drivers, cameradrivers, Bluetooth® drivers, flash memory drivers, serial communicationdrivers (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB) drivers), Wi-Fi® drivers,audio drivers, power management drivers, and so forth depending on thehardware configuration.

The libraries 1420 provide a common infrastructure that is used by theapplications 1516 and/or other components and/or layers.

The libraries 1420 provide functionality that allows other softwarecomponents to perform tasks in an easier fashion than by interfacingdirectly with the underlying operating system 1402 functionality (e.g.,kernel 1422, services 1424, and/or drivers 1426). The libraries 1420 mayinclude system libraries 1444 (e.g., C standard library) that mayprovide functions such as memory allocation functions, stringmanipulation functions, mathematical functions, and the like. Inaddition, the libraries 1420 may include API libraries 1446 such asmedia libraries (e.g., libraries to support presentation andmanipulation of various media formats such as MPEG4, 11.264, MP3, AAC,AMR, JPG, or PNG), graphics libraries (e.g., an OpenGL framework thatmay be used to render 2D and 3D graphic content on a display), databaselibraries (e.g., SQLite that may provide various relational databasefunctions), web libraries (e.g., WebKit that may provide web browsingfunctionality), and the like. The libraries 1420 may also include a widevariety of other libraries 1448 to provide many other APIs to theapplications 1516 and other software components/modules.

The frameworks/middleware 1418 provide a higher-level commoninfrastructure that may be used by the applications 1516 and/or othersoftware components/modules. For example, the frameworks/middleware 1418may provide various graphic user interface (GUI) functions, high-levelresource management, high-level location services, and so forth. Theframeworks/middleware 1418 may provide a broad spectrum of other APIsthat may be utilized by the applications 1516 and/or other softwarecomponents/modules, some of which may be specific to a particularoperating system 1402 or platform.

The applications 1416 include built-in applications 1438 and/orthird-party applications 1440. Examples of representative built-inapplications 1438 may include, but are not limited to, a contactsapplication, a browser application, a book reader application, alocation application, a media application, a messaging application,and/or a game application. The third-party applications 1440 may includean application developed using the ANDROID™ or IOS™ software developmentkit (SDK) by an entity other than the vendor of the particular platform,and may be mobile software running on a mobile operating system such asIOS™, ANDROID™, WINDOWS® Phone, or other mobile operating systems. Thethird-party applications 1440 may invoke the API calls 1408 provided bythe mobile operating system (such as the operating system 1402) tofacilitate functionality described herein.

The applications 1516 may use built-in operating system functions (e.g.,kernel 1422, services 1424, and/or drivers 1426), libraries 1420, andframeworks/middleware 1418 to create user interfaces to interact withusers of the system. Alternatively, or additionally, in some systems,interactions with a user may occur through a presentation layer, such asthe presentation layer 1414. In these systems, the application/component“logic” can be separated from the aspects of the application/componentthat interact with a user.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine 1500,according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from amachine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) andperform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.Specifically, FIG. 15 shows a diagrammatic representation of the machine1500 in the example form of a computer system, within which instructions1516 (e.g., software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, orother executable code) for causing the machine 1500 to perform any oneor more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed. As such,the instructions may be used to implement modules or componentsdescribed herein. The instructions 1516 transform the general,non-programmed machine 1500 into a particular machine 1500 programmed tocarry out the described and illustrated functions in the mannerdescribed. In alternative embodiments, the machine 1500 operates as astandalone device or may be coupled (e.g., networked) to other machines.In a networked deployment, the machine 1500 may operate in the capacityof a server machine or a client machine in a server-client networkenvironment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed)network environment. The machine 1500 may comprise, but not be limitedto, a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), atablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a set-top box (STB), apersonal digital assistant (PDA), an entertainment media system, acellular telephone, a smartphone, a mobile device, a wearable device(e.g., a smart watch), a smart home device (e.g., a smart appliance),other smart devices, a web appliance, a network router, a networkswitch, a network bridge, or any machine capable of executing theinstructions 1516, sequentially or otherwise, that specify actions to betaken by the machine 1500. Further, while only a single machine 1500 isillustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include acollection of machines that individually or jointly execute theinstructions 1516 to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

The machine 1500 may include processors 1510, memory/storage 1530, andI/O components 1550, which may be configured to communicate with eachother such as via a bus 1502. The memory/storage 1530 may include a mainmemory 1532, static memory 1534, and a storage unit 1536, bothaccessible to the processors 1510 such as via the bus 1502. The storageunit 1536 and memory 1532 store the instructions 1516 embodying any oneor more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Theinstructions 1516 may also reside, completely or partially, within thememory 1532, within the storage unit 1436 (e.g., on machinereadable-medium 1538), within at least one of the processors 1510 (e.g.,within the processor cache memory accessible to processors 1512 or1514), or any suitable combination thereof, during execution thereof bythe machine 1500. Accordingly, the memory 1532, the storage unit 1536,and the memory of the processors 1510 are examples of machine-readablemedia.

The I/O components 1550 may include a wide variety of components toreceive input, provide output, produce output, transmit information,exchange information, capture measurements, and so on. The specific I/Ocomponents 1550 that are included in a particular machine 1500 willdepend on the type of machine. For example, portable machines such asmobile phones will likely include a touch input device or other suchinput mechanisms, while a headless server machine will likely notinclude such a touch input device. It will be appreciated that the I/Ocomponents 1550 may include many other components that are not shown inFIG. 15. The I/O components 1550 are grouped according to functionalitymerely for simplifying the following discussion and the grouping is inno way limiting. In various example embodiments, the I/O components 1550may include output components 1552 and input components 1554. The outputcomponents 1552 may include visual components (e.g., a display such as aplasma display panel (PDP), a light-emitting diode (LED) display, aliquid-crystal display (LCD), a projector, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)),acoustic components (e.g., speakers), haptic components (e.g., avibratory motor, resistance mechanisms), other signal generators, and soforth. The input components 1554 may include alphanumeric inputcomponents (e.g., a keyboard, a touch screen configured to receivealphanumeric input, a photo-optical keyboard, or other alphanumericinput components), point-based input components (e.g., a mouse, atouchpad, a trackball, a joystick, a motion sensor, or other pointinginstruments), tactile input components (e.g., a physical button, a touchscreen that provides location and/or force of touches or touch gestures,or other tactile input components), audio input components (e.g., amicrophone), and the like.

In further example embodiments, the I/O components 1550 may includebiometric components 1556, motion components 1558, environmentcomponents 1560, or position components 1562 among a wide array of othercomponents. For example, the biometric components 1556 may includecomponents to detect expressions (e.g., hand expressions, facialexpressions, vocal expressions, body gestures, or eye-tracking), measurebiosignals (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature,perspiration, or brain waves), identify a person (e.g., voiceidentification, retinal identification, facial identification,fingerprint identification, or electroencephalogram-basedidentification), and the like. The motion components 1558 may includeacceleration sensor components (e.g., accelerometer), gravitation sensorcomponents, rotation sensor components (e.g., gyroscope), and so forth.The environment components 1560 may include, for example, illuminationsensor components (e.g., photometer), temperature sensor components(e.g., one or more thermometers that detect ambient temperature),humidity sensor components, pressure sensor components (e.g.,barometer), acoustic sensor components (e.g., one or more microphonesthat detect background noise), proximity sensor components (e.g.,infrared sensors that detect nearby objects), gas sensors (e.g., gassensors to detect concentrations of hazardous gases for safety or tomeasure pollutants in the atmosphere), or other components that mayprovide indications, measurements, or signals corresponding to asurrounding physical environment. The position components 1562 mayinclude location sensor components (e.g., a GPS receiver component),altitude sensor components (e.g., altimeters or barometers that detectair pressure from which altitude may be derived), orientation sensorcomponents (e.g., magnetometers), and the like.

Communication may be implemented using a wide variety of technologies.The I/O components 1550 may include communication components 1564operable to couple the machine 1500 to a network 1580 or devices 1570via a coupling 1582 and a coupling 1572, respectively. For example, thecommunication components 1564 may include a network interface componentor other suitable device to interface with the network 1580. In furtherexamples, the communication components 1564 may include wiredcommunication components, wireless communication components, cellularcommunication components, near field communication (NFC) components,Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components,and other communication components to provide communication via othermodalities. The devices 1570 may be another machine or any of a widevariety of peripheral devices (e.g., a peripheral device coupled via aUSB).

Moreover, the communication components 1564 may detect identifiers orinclude components operable to detect identifiers. For example, thecommunication components 1564 may include radio frequency identification(RFID) tag reader components, NFC smart tag detection components,optical reader components (e.g., an optical sensor to detectone-dimensional barcodes such as Universal Product Code (UPC) barcode,multi-dimensional barcodes such as Quick Response (QR) code, Aztec code,Data Matrix, Dataglyph, MaxiCode, PDF418, Ultra Code, UCC RSS-2Dbarcode, and other optical codes), or acoustic detection components(e.g., microphones to identify tagged audio signals). In addition, avariety of information may be derived via the communication components1564, such as location via Internet Protocol (IP) geolocation, locationvia Wi-Fi® signal triangulation, location via detecting an NFC beaconsignal that may indicate a particular location, and so forth.

“CARRIER SIGNAL” in this context refers to any intangible medium that iscapable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions 1516 forexecution by the machine 1500. and includes digital or analogcommunications signals or other intangible media to facilitatecommunication of such instructions 1516. Instructions 1516 may betransmitted or received over the network 1580 using a transmissionmedium via a network interface device and using any one of a number ofwell-known transfer protocols.

“CLIENT DEVICE” in this context refers to any machine 1500 thatinterfaces to a network 1580 to obtain resources from one or more serversystems or other client devices 102. A client device 102 may be, but isnot limited to, a mobile phone, desktop computer, laptop, PDA,smartphone, tablet, ultrabook, netbook, multi-processor system,microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics system, gameconsole, set-top box, or any other communication device that a user mayuse to access a network 1580.

GLOSSARY

“COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK” in this context refers to one or more portionsof a network 1580 that may be an ad hoc network, an intranet, anextranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), awireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), ametropolitan area network (MAN), the Internet, a portion of theInternet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), aplain old telephone service (POTS) network, a cellular telephonenetwork, a wireless network, a Wi-Fi® network, another type of network,or a combination of two or more such networks. For example, a network ora portion of a network 1580 may include a wireless or cellular network,and the coupling 1582 may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)connection, a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) connection,or another type of cellular or wireless coupling. In this example, thecoupling may implement any of a variety of types of data transfertechnology, such as Single Carrier Radio Transmission Technology(1xRTT), Evolution-Data Optimized (EVDO) technology, General PacketRadio Service (GPRS) technology, Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution(EDGE) technology, third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) including3G, fourth-generation wireless (4G) networks, Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA),Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Long-TermEvolution (LTE) standard, others defined by various standard-settingorganizations, other long-range protocols, or other data transfertechnology.

“EPHEMERAL MESSAGE” in this context refers to a message 400 that isaccessible for a time-limited duration. An ephemeral message 502 may bea text, an image, a video, and the like. The access time for theephemeral message 502 may be set by the message sender. Alternatively,the access time may be a default setting or a setting specified by therecipient. Regardless of the setting technique, the message 400 istransitory.

“MACHINE-READABLE MEDIUM” in this context refers to a component, adevice, or other tangible media able to store instructions 1516 and datatemporarily or permanently and may include, but is not limited to,random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), buffer memory, flashmemory, optical media, magnetic media, cache memory, other types ofstorage (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM)), and/orany suitable combination thereof. The term “machine-readable medium”should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., acentralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers)able to store instructions 1516. The term “machine-readable medium”shall also be taken to include any medium, or combination of multiplemedia, that is capable of storing instructions 1516 (e.g., code) forexecution by a machine 1500, such that the instructions 1516, whenexecuted by one or more processors 1510 of the machine 1500, cause themachine 1500 to perform any one or more of the methodologies describedherein. Accordingly, a “machine-readable medium” refers to a singlestorage apparatus or device, as well as “cloud-based” storage systems orstorage networks that include multiple storage apparatus or devices. Theterm “machine-readable medium” excludes signals per se.

“COMPONENT” in this context refers to a device, a physical entity, orlogic having boundaries defined by function or subroutine calls, branchpoints, APIs, or other technologies that provide for the partitioning ormodularization of particular processing or control functions. Componentsmay be combined via their interfaces with other components to carry outa machine process. A component may be a packaged functional hardwareunit designed for use with other components and a part of a program thatusually performs a particular function of related functions. Componentsmay constitute either software components (e.g., code embodied on amachine-readable medium) or hardware components.

A “hardware component” is a tangible unit capable of performing certainoperations and may be configured or arranged in a certain physicalmanner. In various example embodiments, one or more computer systems(e.g., a standalone computer system, a client computer system, or aserver computer system) or one or more hardware components of a computersystem (e.g., a processor 1512 or a group of processors 1510) may beconfigured by software (e.g., an application or application portion) asa hardware component that operates to perform certain operations asdescribed herein. A hardware component may also be implementedmechanically, electronically, or any suitable combination thereof. Forexample, a hardware component may include dedicated circuitry or logicthat is permanently configured to perform certain operations. A hardwarecomponent may be a special-purpose processor, such as afield-programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application-specificintegrated circuit (ASIC). A hardware component may also includeprogrammable logic or circuitry that is temporarily configured bysoftware to perform certain operations. For example, a hardwarecomponent may include software executed by a general-purpose processoror other programmable processors. Once configured by such software,hardware components become specific machines (or specific components ofa machine 1500) uniquely tailored to perform the configured functionsand are no longer general-purpose processors 1510.

It will be appreciated that the decision to implement a hardwarecomponent mechanically, in dedicated and permanently configuredcircuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured bysoftware) may be driven by cost and time considerations. Accordingly,the phrase “hardware component” (or “hardware-implemented component”)should be understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entitythat is physically constructed, permanently configured (e.g.,hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in acertain manner or to perform certain operations described herein.

Considering embodiments in which hardware components are temporarilyconfigured (e.g., programmed), each of the hardware components need notbe configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For example,where a hardware component comprises a general-purpose processor 1512Configured by software to become a special-purpose processor, thegeneral-purpose processor 1512 may be configured as respectivelydifferent special-purpose processors (e.g., comprising differenthardware components) at different times. Software accordingly configuresa particular processor 1512 or processors 1510, for example, toconstitute a particular hardware component at one instance of time andto constitute a different hardware component at a different instance oftime.

Hardware components can provide information to, and receive informationfrom, other hardware components. Accordingly, the described hardwarecomponents may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Wheremultiple hardware components exist contemporaneously, communications maybe achieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuitsand buses) between or among two or more of the hardware components. Inembodiments in which multiple hardware components are configured orinstantiated at different times, communications between or among suchhardware components may be achieved, for example, through the storageand retrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiplehardware components have access. For example, one hardware component mayperform an operation and store the output of that operation in a memorydevice to which it is communicatively coupled. A further hardwarecomponent may then, at a later time, access the memory device toretrieve and process the stored output. Hardware components may alsoinitiate communications with input or output devices, and can operate ona resource (e.g., a collection of information).

The various operations of example methods described herein may beperformed, at least partially, by one or more processors 1510 that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors 1510 may constitute processor-implementedcomponents that operate to perform one or more operations or functionsdescribed herein. As used herein, “processor-implemented component”refers to a hardware component implemented using one or more processors1510. Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partiallyprocessor-implemented, with a particular processor 1512 or processors1510 being an example of hardware. For example, at least some of theoperations of a method may be performed by one or more processors 1510or processor-implemented components. Moreover, the one or moreprocessors 1510 may also operate to support performance of the relevantoperations in a “cloud computing” environment or as a “software as aservice” (SaaS). For example, at least some of the operations may beperformed by a group of computers (as examples of machines 1500including processors 1510), with these operations being accessible via anetwork 1580 (e.g., the Internet) and via one or more appropriateinterfaces (e.g., an API). The performance of certain of the operationsmay be distributed among the processors 1510, not only residing within asingle machine 1500, but deployed across a number of machines 1500. Insome example embodiments, the processors 1510 or processor-implementedcomponents may be located in a single geographic location (e.g., withina home environment, an office environment, or a server farm). In otherexample embodiments, the processors 1510 or processor-implementedcomponents may be distributed across a number of geographic locations.

“PROCESSOR” in this context refers to any circuit or virtual circuit (aphysical circuit emulated by logic executing on an actual processor1512) that manipulates data values according to control signals (e.g.,“commands,” “op codes,” “machine code,” etc.) and which producescorresponding output signals that are applied to operate a machine 1500.A processor may, for example, be a central processing unit (CPU), areduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complexinstruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit(GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a radio-frequencyintegrated circuit (RTIC), or any combination thereof. A processor 1510may further be a multi-core processor 1510 having two or moreindependent processors 1512, 1514 (sometimes referred to as “cores”)that may execute instructions 1516 contemporaneously.

“TIMESTAMP” in this context refers to a sequence of characters orencoded information identifying when a certain event occurred, forexample giving date and time of day, sometimes accurate to a smallfraction of a second.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: causing a device to display a pool user interface element; in response to receiving a selection of the pool user interface element, initiating, on the device, an active social network pool session for multiple image data items; generating one or more data items without immediately displaying the one or more data items on the device; identifying a termination event; in response to identifying the termination event, causing display of the one or more data items in a user interface of the device for editing using image processing; and terminating the active social network pool session.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises: detecting that a quantity of the multiple image data items in the active social network pool session meets a first pool limit
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first pool limit is a threshold number of data items generated in a single active social network pool session.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises detecting that a time duration of the one or more data items being displayed individually or combined meets a second pool limit.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the second pool limit is a threshold time duration of data items generated in a single active social network pool session.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises: detecting a user interaction with the user interface to publish the one or more data items images as one or more ephemerals messages on a social network site.
 7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: storing the one or more data items in a temporary memory allocated for the active social network pool session.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: generating a plurality of review elements in the user interface of the device; storing modifications associated with each edited data item; detecting a selection of one or more edited data items; and transmitting the one or more edited data items as one or more ephemeral messages on a social network site.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising: generating an invisible edit layer overlaid on a media player displaying the one or more data items on the user interface, the invisible edit layer includes one or more selectable edit buttons corresponding to one or more of editing effects.
 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising: receiving a selection of an editing effect; and simultaneously applying the editing effect to e one or more data items in the active social network pool session.
 11. A system comprising: one or more hardware processors; and a non-transitory machine-readable medium for storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors, cause the one or more hardware processors to perform operations comprising: causing a device to display a pool user interface element; in response to receiving a selection of the pool user interface element, initiating, on the device, an active social network pool session for multiple image data items; generating one or more data items without immediately displaying the one or more data items on the device; identifying a termination event; in response to identifying the termination event, causing display of the one or more data items in a user interface of the device for editing using image processing; and terminating the active social network pool session.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises: detecting that a quantity of the multiple image data items in the active social network pool session meets a first pool limit.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first pool limit is a threshold number of data items generated in a single active social network pool session.
 14. The system of claim 11, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises: detecting that a time duration of the one or more data items being displayed individually or combined meets a second pool limit
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein the second pool limit is a threshold time duration of data items generated in a single active social network pool session.
 16. The system of claim 11, wherein the identifying the termination event further comprises: detecting a user interaction with the user interface to publish the one or more data items images as one or more ephemeral messages on a social network site.
 17. The system of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise: generating a plurality of review elements in the user interface of the device; storing modifications associated with each edited data item; detecting a selection of one or more edited data items; and transmitting the one or more edited data items as one or more ephemeral messages on a social network site.
 18. The system of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise: generating an invisible edit layer overlaid on a media player displaying the one or more data items on the user interface, the invisible edit layer includes one or more selectable edit buttons corresponding to one or more of editing effects.
 19. The system of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise: receiving a selection of an editing effect; and simultaneously applying the editing effect to the one or more data items in the active social network pool session.
 20. A non-transitory machine-readable medium for storing instructions that, when executed by one or more hardware processors, cause the one or more hardware processors to perform operations comprising: causing a device to display a pool user interface element; in response to receiving a selection of the pool user interface element, initiating, on the device, an active social network pool session for multiple image data items; generating one or more data items without immediately displaying the one or more data items on the device; identifying a termination event; in response to identifying the termination event, causing display of the one or more data items in a user interface of the device for editing using image processing; and terminating the active social network pool session. 